Status: 07/03/2023 12:44 pm
Chancellor Scholz has announced a massive expansion of renewable energy. Heat pumps must be the heating system of the future. But there are also questions about its compatibility with the weather.
Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz wants to significantly increase the expansion of renewable energy: “From 2024, we will install 500,000 new heat pumps every year”, he said at the conference of the Association of Municipal Companies. Heat pumps are supposed to be a climate-friendly heat supply for German homes – unlike oil and gas. Gas plants will also be significantly expanded. In the future, they should be able to run on hydrogen.
Energy must remain accessible
“Hydrogen can and will replace natural gas, oil and coal – particularly in industry, the energy sector, but also air, sea and heavy transport,” he said. Electricity demand will increase from 600 terawatt hours today to 750 terawatt hours by 2030. 80 percent of that would then be generated by renewable energy.
“By 2030, we want to build ten gigawatts of electrolysis capacity in Germany – that’s twice as much as originally planned in the national hydrogen strategy,” he added, referring to hydrogen production. Energy in Germany must remain affordable.
Chancellor Scholz guarantees help to suppliers at the conference of municipal companies
Anke Hahn, RBB, Daily News at 12pm, March 7, 2023
Habeck and Scholz on the same course
Scholz backed Economy Minister Robert Habeck’s announcement to allow an industrial electricity price – allowing companies to buy green electricity directly from the power producer. The federal government will promote so-called power purchase agreements between renewable energy buyers and producers, Scholz said.
Habeck announced on Monday that he would quickly implement a concept for an industrial electricity price in Germany. According to Habeck, renewable energy production costs are five to nine cents. This money should reach companies directly, for example through direct contracts. “That would be part of the market price of industrial electricity,” Habeck said.
Heat pumps are booming
In the first three quarters of 2022, the production of heat pumps increased by almost 50%, announced the Federal Statistical Office. In 2021, such a device was installed in half of completed new residential buildings. According to the Federal Heat Pump Association, heat pump sales for heating increased from 120,000 in 2020 to 154,000 in 2021 and 236,000 last year.
Heat pumps extract heat from ambient air, groundwater or the soil. But you need a lot of electricity – the more of it comes from renewables, the more environmentally friendly this heating option will be.
Refrigerant contains toxic gases
However, the use of heat pumps has its problems: the refrigerant, which is crucial for the efficiency of the pump, in most cases contains artificial gases from the group of per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS). This is shown by surveys by NDR, WDR and “Süddeutsche Zeitung” (SZ) These fluorinated gases are considered so toxic that they will be widely banned in Europe in just a few years.
Even if the refrigerant in heat pumps is really in a closed circuit, there is a risk. Gases can escape, especially during disposal.
“We can and will succeed in the energy transition”
However, Chancellor Scholz is confident: the future belongs to renewable energies, for cost reasons, for environmental reasons and for safety reasons, he says. Scholz referred to progress in expanding green wind and sun electricity and the planned construction of new gas plants that can be converted to hydrogen. “We can and will succeed in the energy transition,” said Chancellor Scholz.
After the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, Germany managed to become independent of fossil fuels from Russia. Germany is entering spring and the coming years stronger.